In the Field

Animal tracks fascinate me. They can not only convey a wealth of information about an animal's behaviour, but they can be sources of beauty (or at least visual interest!) themselves.

I was on a remote coastal island when I encountered these tracks. I was excited about them for a couple of reasons. First, I knew instantly that they were either Northern River Otter or Sea Otter tracks (and both species are found in this region). Second, I loved the natural texture of the sand and how the tracks strongly contrasted with them.

As it turned out, I saw a river otter nearby a few minutes later, and its tracked matched these ones almost perfectly. A week or so later I confirmed the match with a field guide to animal tracks. It was still a good find, but I have to admit I was slightly disappointed that they weren't Sea Otter tracks!